Lightning Country
The Land of Lightning (雷の国, Kaminari no Kuni) is located on a peninsula north and is one of the Five Great Shinobi Countries. Its government leader is the Lightning Daimyō. In the centre of the country are vast mountain ranges, whose many thunderstorms are said to give the country its name. From these mountain ranges, many rivers flow to the sea, creating a very crooked coastline that displays an impressive oceanic beauty. There are many hot springs located within the country. History Formation of the Lightning Country The formation of the Lightning officially started at 390 but it had been a century of work of the Ranzaki dynasty. With marriages with powerful clans and factions present on the northern peninsula, the Ranzaki dynasty managed to secure allies, influence and power. Expanding rapidly around them they would attempt to form the Lightning country in order to put an end to the constant warring of its clans. This didn't go as smooth as the Ranzaki had hoped for, leading that the official formation only occurred at 394. Once the country had been formed the Ranzaki started to focus on their internal politics. Unlike many other countries, the feudal lord of the country had to deal with not only settled clans and groups but also with nomads. Various times it would slow down the progress of the plans and plots of the Ranzaki to evaluate their nation to one of the most powerful in the known world. Eventually, they managed and even started to have their own Hidden Village, called Kumogakure. Decadence Dawns The foundation of Kumogakure saw a rise in the military power of the Lightning country. Starting to form a slightly more organised military the dynasty, however, started to become less efficient rulers. Many at the time who noticed the rise of decadence blamed it on the fact that the daimyo and his relatives were starting to enjoy too much of the luxurious life. As long as wealth flowed into the coffins and nothing seemed to go wrong the ruling daimyo didn't do much to improve the situation of either their country or of their subjects. Clans and nomads started to enjoy more autonomy, just paying tax and offering some resources to the ruling dynasty to be able to mind their own business. Not many were opposed to the freedom but from time to time there were various factions that tried to lobby the ruling dynasty to improve matters. If successful at their attempts, the lobbyists would only gain it temporarily. Even during The Great War, the Lightning country seemed to be more ruled by its clans and the Raikage than the daimyo. Content with their situation they only briefly intervened with sending their own forces when the war didn't seem to go well for the Lightning. Threat of a Succession Crisis In 476 a succession crisis arose in the north. Talking about bad timing as various odd and troublesome events happened. In Kumogakure, the Fifth Raikage and the other higher ups were battling against a mysterious organisation that clearly was intending on ending their lives. Yasuhide had been assassinated, his oldest son - Keitaro went with the wind and the sickly youngest remaining being put on the throne. With a regency council formed by Aki and a mysterious monk going by the name Kata. Proclaiming that Keitaro had murdered his father and went into hiding, Aki declared that he should be marked as a traitor and be hunted down. Lightning Country's Military The military of the Lightning Country relies on volunteers. While there isn't a real shortcoming, there isn't either a set time on which soldier or shinobi has to be with the military. It has occurred before that people went into service and resigned after a considerable amount of training, deciding to put their skill and sword for hire. While some in the military consider this to be a concern there hasn't been much that has been done about it. It even is considered by the majority as a mere tradition and a privilege. And people tend to grow antsy when their privileges are being taken away. For that same reason, those who enlist in the military have to provide for their own gear. If in any case, the enlisted person can't provide for their own weapons or armour, they will be considered in debt with the state. Needing to serve and pay their debt off. Something that isn't quite easy as there are some rumours going around that the debts don't seem to shrink. Political Structure In the Lightning country, the head of the state is the Feudal Lord, the Lightning Daimyo. Governing from the capital of Ranzaki, the daimyo can rule over most land without much impunity. However, when it comes to the clans or vassal states then the Daimyo's influence might be depending on his vassal's loyalty and his own personal might. The latter is often a motivation for the daimyo to increase their own personal retinue, which often causes friction with the Raikage and his or her military. While the daimyo is, in fact, the ruler of the land, in the Lightning country this isn't the same as in other countries. There is a lot of freedom and rights upon which the citizens of the country can rely on. There is no conscription or another decree in place to make the country's military larger and most nomads even roam the nation tax-free - only paying some when trading wares. Laws in the Lightning Country Citizenship in the Lightning Country Category:Lightning Country Category:Country